June 5, 2020
Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.
John 3:7-8
Beloved Faithful in the Lord,
The above words from John’s Gospel were spoken by our Lord in His dialogue with the pharisee, Nicodemus, about what it means to be born again. While the usage of this phrase is emphasized by some Christian groups more than others, it is truly a call from Jesus Himself to each and every one of us to be born again of water and the Spirit (John 3:5).
We have all experienced the rebirth of water in our baptism, and initial rebirth of the Spirit in our chrismation. However, these are not one-time events that we participate in for a single time, most often before we are even aware of doing so, and no longer need to worry about. These are rebirths that require our continual participation. The Spirit may blow where it wills but is up to each and every one of us to allow ourselves to be moved by that wind, to hear its sound and follow where it leads.
Beloved in the Lord, this Sunday we celebrate Pentecost – the initial descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples of the Lord. I pray that each of us will again hear the voice of God in our hearts and our minds – and that again we will be transported to the same experience of the
Apostles two thousand years ago. Let us hear God in our hearts – through Scripture and worship; let us walk with God in truth and justice in our lives as did His Apostles; and let us see God in our hands as we do His will on this earth.
May this celebration serve as a reminder of that wind that entered an upper room two thousand years ago. May it remind us of the tongues of fire that appeared, and the subsequent invitation of the Apostles to a rebirth of water and spirit which was heard by all in their own tongue. May it be an invitation for us to recommit ourselves to our own spiritual rebirth.
With paternal love and hierarchical blessings,
+NICHOLAS
Metropolitan of Detroit